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Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Cardillo-Cordiferro, Core 'ngrato

One of the most famous and glorious Neapolitan songs was actually written in America. Core 'ngrato (Ungrateful heart), also known as Catari' (after the name of the cruel lady) was written in the States one hundred years ago by Italian immigrants Salvatore Cardillo (music) and Riccardo Cordiferro (pseudonym of Alessandro Sisca, lyrics).

First we'll look at the lyrics in the original Neapolitan, then I'll translate into standard Italian and then English. Finally, we'll examine a mini-mystery about Caruso's version of the words, which differs from others'.

And the priest, who is a holy man said: "Son, leave her alone, leave her alone."

Heart, ungrateful heart

You've taken my life

Everything has passed

And you no longer think of it.

Above you have two versions of this sublime song. The first is by the famed tenor Enrico Caruso, the second by the late great Neapolitan singer Roberto Murolo.

Caruso's version, which is perhaps the original, changes the second part when he is in church and doesn't mention the priest (but he does mention praying to God). No other version I have heard, including Murolo's, is like this. Further, I can't quite make out what Caruso is saying instead of the part about the priest. After some digging, I found that the lyricist Sisca was a radical socialist and deeply anti-clerical, so it is possible that this was his original version. I personally think that the version with the priest is superior- regardless of what one may think of the Catholic Church and its clergy.

Oddly, Cardillo, who wrote the music, was surprised by its enormous success and called it a porcheria (junk). How little he knew. It is now in the standard repertoire of every self-respecting tenor. None of whom, to my knowledge, sing Caruso's version.